Alcohol Interactions With Cyclobenzaprine: Know This Healthy Living Advice?
Doctors would prescribe medications to almost everybody at some point in our existence. It could be for a short-term medication for urgent treatment like broken bone, flu or a long-term medication for persistent illness like heart disease, cancer, interestingly most people in life would go through medication prescription.
Most of the time, everything comes out so fine and alright but at times, the opposite occurs due to adverse drug events. This includes medication errors, allergic reactions, overdose and negative drug reactions.
In a year, a whole lot of people become emergency patients because of an adverse drug event resulting in minor illness like common cold and cough or major ones like stroke and seizures. These adverse events are mostly due to drugs interactions, many of which occur because of alcohol intake during the cause of taking the drugs.
Since majority of adults will use alcohol at some point in their lifetime, learning how alcohol reacts with specific prescription medications is crucial.
What is Cyclobenzaprine?
Cyclobenzaprine, available under the following different brand names: Flexeril, Amrix and Fexmid, is a muscle relaxant which works by blocking the brain from accepting nerve impulses or pain sensations that are sent to it. It is used jointly with rest and physical therapy to treat pain or injury conditions in the skeletal muscle.
It alleviates muscle cramp through action on the central nervous system at the brain stem and works by acting in the brain and nervous system to allow the muscles to relax.
Additionally, it also has some other non-caption uses which include tension headaches, insomnia, fibromyalgia (memory and mood issues), and even tinnitus (ringing in the ears).
Cyclobenzaprine is recommended as a short-term solution and a prescription lengths of 2–3 weeks on average.
Common side effects may include:
- drowsiness
- tiredness
- headache
- dizziness
- dry mouth
- upset stomach
- nausea
- constipation
- lack of energy or physical weakness
- Confusion
Rare side effects of Cyclobenzaprine include:
- abnormal heartbeat
- reduction or stoppage of bile flow
- acute allergic reaction
Alcohol
Alcohol is a liquid produced by fermentation of yeast, sugars, and starches and this processing yields alcoholic drinks such as spirits, beer, cider and wine.
Alcohol is a depressant drug. This means that it slows down activity of the central nervous system and the messages going between the brain and the body resulting in slurred speech, unsteady movement, disturbed perceptions and an inability to react quickly. It is a drug that reduces a person’s ability to think rationally and drastically distorts his or her judgment.
Alcohol Effects On Brain And Body
Alcohol is a Central Nervous System depressant just like Cyclobenazprine. This is surprising to many people because they feel stimulated or euphoric when they drink. The body absorbs the alcohol and which leads to increase in blood alcohol levels. The brain as a result of this will release the motivational chemical dopamine, the feel-good chemicals that activates memory circuits in other parts of the brain that remember this satisfying and pleasing encounter and leave you eager for more.
Alcohol causes the normal function of the principal inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain known as GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) to be dependent on the presence of alcohol in the bloodstream. It binds to GABA receptors and amplifies the effect of GABA.
Alcohol systematically affects and slows down activities in the cerebral cortex of the brain. This is where lots of brain functions occur, including sensory data (Action- data that is made available to a person for processing using their own senses and judgement), motor skills (movements and actions of the bone structures), and decision making.
As an individual continues to drink, the ethanol hits the brain and blocks certain impulses fired between nerve cells in the brain. Alcohol dramatically decreases decision-making skills and inhibitions. Also affected is the Sensory data, usually with visual disorder and loss of temperature sensation.
Interactions (Combining Alcohol And Cyclobenzaprine)
Alcohol is a depressant, and so is cyclobenzaprine. Taking the two at the same time is a recipe for disaster. Doing it on purpose to get intoxicated or not remembering the medication have been taken but still consume alcohol, is deadly and nothing to play around with.
Alcohol can increase the nervous system intricacies of cyclobenzaprine such as drowsiness, dizziness and difficulty in concentrating. Some people may also experience damage in thinking and judgment. The use of alcohol should be totally avoided or limited in the period of prevailing treated with cyclobenzaprine.
Drugs.com stated that if you are taking medications that contain cyclobenzaprine, you avoid drinking alcohol at any rate or limit it to the least amount. This proves that the combination of the two drugs can lead to brutal and harmful consequences.
It can be extremely dangerous, especially if you get into your motor vehicle and drive while under the influence of both drugs. In general, more fatal accidents occur when you mix and consume different drugs, even over-the-counter ones.
Significantly, both alcohol and cyclobenzaprine affect the central nervous system. Since they are both central nervous system depressants, alcohol can enhance the cyclobenzaprine, which may definitely cause an overdose. Therefore, if a patient is taking cyclobenzaprine, drinking alcohol should totally be refrained from. There is no cautious level of alcohol to drink when taking cyclobenzaprine.
Drinking alcohol is known to boost the side effects of Cyclobenzaprine and vice versa. This happens mainly because both substances are central nervous system depressants, being in the body system together can impair mental abilities and coordination and make tasks like driving or working with heavy machinery very hazardous.
Since alcohol heightens the muscle anti stress relaxation agent, the patient may display signs of overdose even if taking the normal expected amount of cyclobenzaprine. The combination of these two depressants; alcohol and cyclobenzaprine, may cause the following symptoms:
- Slurred speech reduced heart rate
- Memory loss
- Lethargy
- Lack of coordination
- Shallow breathing or slow breathing
- Disorientation
- Seizures
- Muscle weakness
In conclusion, cyclobenzaprine is a safe medically prescribed muscle relaxant when taken as directed by the doctor or physician for short periods of time, it should not be combined with alcohol.
